Toshiba Satellite M35X. How to fix most common laptop problems.
Toshiba Satellite M35X is a very popular model in the United States. In general, most Toshiba Satellite M35X laptops suffer from the same problems. Here’s a disassembly guide.
Improperly grounded top cover assembly. If the top cover assembly wasn’t grounded properly, then laptop may lock up or freeze up when you touch it in the speaker area. It happens because of a static electricity discharge. This problem was fixed on some laptops, but still there are a lot of laptops with unmodified top cover assembly. This problem should be covered under warranty even if you laptop is not under warranty anymore.
Poorly designed DC-IN power jack on the system board. Overtime, the DC power jack gets disconnected from the system board. If it happens, you will experience a problem with charging the battery or the laptop may not start at all.
Read more:
Toshiba Satellite M35X and A75 power jack and battery charge problem.
Toshiba Satellite 1900 laptop looses power and shuts down without warning.
Laptop CPU overheating. It is a very common problem for some Toshiba laptops. If a laptop CPU overheats, then the laptop shuts down without by itself without any reason. Read more:
Why my Toshiba laptop suddenly shuts down by itself without warning?
You can use the disassembly guide to take apart Toshiba Satellite M35X notebook and repair it yourself. Do not open the case if your laptop is still under warranty.
Need spare parts for your laptop? Search here by the laptop model and part name or number.
May 30th, 2008 at 11:52 am
Ralph,
K000019630 = Montara-GM+ TV-Out 1394 5n1 (No FIR No Prt)
K000019660 = Montara-GM+ TV-Out 1394 (No 5n1 No FIR No Prt) – has intergrated wifi as does 19630. No Card Reader. No Printer Port. Shared memory graphics.
K000019680 = Montara-GM+ TV-Out 1394 (No 5n1 No FIR No Prt) – has no wifi I think.
K000019220 = M11P 64MB VRAM TV-Out 1394 FIR Par Prt 5n1
K000019210 = as 19220 but with 128MB Graphics chip.
All these motherboards will fit the M30X/M35X (with maybe slight modifications to the case). The 19220/19210 have separate non-shared memory graphics chips so require a slightly different chip heatsink plate. To my knowledge all will support the same CPU’s.
Hope this helps, Stuart
PS I have junked examples of several of these boards if you need to know any more features.
May 30th, 2008 at 10:44 am
Hi Ralph,
Some of the M35X MB’s don’t have a WIFI connector, so no internal wireless. Some are for the Centrino CPU, these are the most in demand.
Jerry
May 30th, 2008 at 8:06 am
For the sake of others who read this forum, I wanted to note that the AC jack on mine was repaired 6 times under warranty by Toshiba. Now that their extended warranty has expired, I felt compelled to try fixing it myself, using instructions available here.
The AC jack is fine, good continuity, epoxied in place by the last repair shop. But the connector for the button board cable was very loose and actually broke out of the motherboard when I tried to carefully remove the cable.
So all that warranty work, being disassembled and reassembled 6 times, led to something else being worn and broken.
May 30th, 2008 at 7:49 am
Is there a significant difference between the three motherboards associated with M35X models: K100019630, K000019660, and K000019680? I see several MB’s available on eBay , and I’m wondering if my M35X-S149 will only work with another K000019660.
May 18th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
My Toshiba m35/s309 will not boot. I’ve miss placed the recovery and application diskette. Also, the computer is running on thru some scan when I boot it up. Any suggestions?
April 25th, 2008 at 8:10 am
Hi Lorena,
Send me a pic of the connector. I might have a spare from a dead motherboard. jrhirsch@netscape.com
April 25th, 2008 at 7:52 am
Hey Stuart, the fix with the brass is not perfect sometimes you have to move the AC plug slightly to get it to power up, I repaired it for a client and if they complain I am going to put in a jack away from the mobo as some have stated here. Good luck with the dell I have a shop full of broken ones, seems like the major problem is they no longer can charge the battery and can only be used with AC. Also lots of dead screen problems usally rite after the warranty expires.
April 24th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Hello,
i would like to thank you for the help that you have given to all of us that have stupid toshiba Laptops. My problem is the following and I can’t seem to find a solution or where i can get the part. I have a Toshiba Satellite M45-355 and i made a stupid mistake and i broke some of the legs from the white connector strip that goes from the power board to the main board. Now My computer doesn’t turn on unless I remove the keyboard and play around with the strip. I tried looking online for those white think connectors, but I haven’t found any online or anyway to fix them. Let me know…thank you
April 23rd, 2008 at 9:05 am
Here is the correct solution to the M35X DC jack problem from someone who actually repairs them for a living.
Problem #1 is that the DC jack solder joints are broken. The jack itself is usually not broken, it just needs to be resoldered. It should be soldered on the top and the bottom of the motherboard for maximum strength.
For a more reliable repair, a new screw on type jack can be fastened to the case, with flexible wires going to the motherboard. Putting side pressure on the jack will then not be able to flex the motherboard, which causes the solder joints to break. I use a screw on jack for all of my repairs, Mouser.com part #502-712A. This will fit the stock Toshiba AC adapter tip.
Problem #2 is that after repairing the jack, it still may not boot. The blue power light and fan comes on, nothing else. What causes this is that some solder joints have broken on a 40 or 48 pin chip that is next to the DC jack. That is why it will sometimes bootup if side pressure is applied to the jack. It flexes the motherboard enough so that the broken solder joints make contact, usually temporarily. This is why it is so important to isolate the jack from the motherboard, so the solder joints don’t keep breaking after the DC jack has been repairred.
This chip has extremely small pin spacing, making it difficult for the average person to solder. It takes a sharp sodering tip, magnification, and a steady hand.
These two repairs will put 90% of the M35x’s back in service. If you need some advice on repairing this yourself, contact me at jrhirsch@netscape.com.
If you are unable to repair the laptop, I offer an M35X repair service on Ebay. It has a picture of the completed repair showing the new jack, wiring, and location of the problem chip. Search under m35x laptop repair. My Ebay ID is jrhirsch.
Jerry
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:29 am
Thank you for the advice. However the CD-ROM does not eject as well , so I believe I may have bad motherboard.
From the comments it seems that this is a common problem with the M35X-S149.
April 22nd, 2008 at 8:36 pm
wai,
Remove the hard drive and install in into an external USB enclosure. After that connect this USB enclosure to any working computer, access the external hard drive and back up data.
For more information on using external USB enclosure read this article.
April 22nd, 2008 at 8:33 pm
jamal,
Test the laptop with an external monitor. Can you get video on the external monitor?
If both internal and external monitors have no video and new memory stick didn’t fix the problem, most likely you have bad motherboard.
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:23 pm
hi! I had read some comments on the website and it seen like people have the same problem. The website has alot good advises and people are tried to fix the computer themself. Does anybody has any ideas how to extract the informations from the hard drive when the computer is not working or functioning?
Wai
April 21st, 2008 at 5:45 am
Hi guys!
I have a Toshiba Satellite M35X-S149 and I have this problem:
Fan runs about 5 seconds, power stay on , CD-RW don’t eject and nothing show in screen simply dark.
I have 2 memory modules . I tried remove one and try and boot. No change still have the same problem
Please help.
April 17th, 2008 at 12:35 am
Nice idea Eddie T. I tried something similar with a wedge but with only limited success. Hope you have more luck. It would be great to hear how you get on as I am convinced this problem affects many of these laptops. I have about 5 old motherboards now that don’t work! Most of them I probably fired trying to resolder the tiny pins on the offending chip. Since bought a dell inspiron 6000 as fed up with the Toshiba’s. I always epoxy the jack to the motherboard now on all my laptops to stop this flexing problem with the weak solder connections – so far so good. I also have 2 M30X’s which have been epoxy’d and have worked for over a year so far with no problem. I’d advise anyone who has a successful fix to glue it!!!!
April 16th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Most of the problems stated here refer to the comments below, after reading this post I decided to try and put pressure on the chip and the computer booted, removing the pressure and no boot. For a temporary (maybe permanent fix I ground a piece of brass to fit on top of the chip and in between the case putting constant pressure on it. I am going to epoxy it in place. If it lasts then great if not then I’ll remove the board and make a permant fix.
see pic:
http://img2.freeimagehosting.net/image.php?765e54423e.jpg
Problem #2 is that after repairing the jack, it still does not boot. The blue power light and fan comes on, nothing else.
What causes this is that some solder joints have broken on a 48 pin chip that is next to the DC jack. That is why it will sometimes bootup if side pressure is applied to the jack. It flexes the motherboard enough so that the broken solder joints make contact, usually temporarily. This is why it is so important to isolate the jack from the motherboard, so the solder joints don’t keep breaking.
This chip has extremely small pin spacing, making it difficult for the average person to solder
April 9th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
Also, when I took the machine apart and checked the power connector, it looks rock solid, doesnt seem broken or cracked to me…..once again, battery power exhibits the same symptoms…..
April 9th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
I’m having the same problem with the blue power light, fan for 5 seconds, no display. How could it be a power jack problem if I have the same problem running off of a fully charged battery, without the machine being plugged in?
March 27th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Hi guys, I have this terrible designed notebook too. I got it from Circuit City in Maryland. I have the same problem described by “frustrated”. I had the extended warranty and had already changed the MB and top cover four times!!! Despite I covered the speakers to not touch them and I use a four fan coolant system too.
Guess what, I just got it from the “garage” and at the first attempt to start it, the notebook died again. The same PCI conflict error while booting and then no booting at all (MS Windows detects the hardware problem and stops). Using OpenSuse 10.3 Live CD I was able to run it and recover my files, but I saw that there is no wireless. Normally the Atheros wireless death is the first symptom, then the booting error and later the motherboard has to be replaced because it just does not start anymore.
I read that not all M35X-S19 but a full series of them have and will always have this problem. Toshiba knows it and does nothing about it. A trial was set against TOSHIBA but they only offered $20 in compensation and an extension on the warranty (same that I payed already). However, the notebook trends to be more time under service than serving you, and once the warranty is over, Toshiba does not accept its responsibility for this terrible design. I was told by the local service that now, I cannot have the MD replaced anymore unless I pay for it… Toshiba should have offered us another model or gave the money back instead of just replacing parts that are known to be defective.
Since Toshiba is doing nothing, is there anybody that has been able to prevent the MB from burning? like by removing the Atheros chip or something like? so maybe we can use an external USB wireless device instead, or something else? what to do with this notebook? should I just take the HDD out and use it inside a box as an external hardrive? I have no idea of how to make some use of the parts of this notebook as it just dies, get replaced the MB, dies again and again and now I have no more warranty to continue the endless toshiba show.
Sorry, I am very upset.
March 22nd, 2008 at 7:05 pm
I’ve had my M35X for a couple of years now, the power connector broke about 6 months after getting it and I never sent it in, I was able to set the power cord in just the right position to get the battery light to come on so just dealt with it.
A few times I took the top off and attempted to solder the top side of the power connector. This only lasted a short time before I had to be adjusting the power cable again.
Thanks to the images in the guide I finally was able to take the motherboard out and bring it into work where I had better equipment (microscopes, solder equipment, appropriate fluxes and wash facilities, heatsink compound etc…) and was able to get that power pin to take solder and get a good solder joint. I could push the pin and see it wiggle in the hole surrounded by solder. I would highly recommend having the right equipment.
We’ll see how long this repair lasts. The next time, I’m taking the connector out and running wires.
March 21st, 2008 at 10:26 am
Well commented that instructions for M35X were wrong but as you noted I am wrong. Best suggestion before complaining RTFI. At any rate fixed my laptop.Thanks for eccellent Info.
March 21st, 2008 at 3:40 am
my lpatopg screen has flipted around so every thing is upside down.please help me what should i do .my model is a toshiba equium a200=15 i
March 18th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Hi Stuart,
Many thanks for your suggestion.
Tried the memory without success so took the bull by the horns and stripped entire system down …
Found some very suspect looking dry joints on motherboard which I have re-soldered …
The main thing that grabbed my attention during dismantling was the ribbon cable for the keyboard wasn’t fully engaged in socket … it was at an angle … don’t know how long its been like that …
Even if bios is set to halt on all faults, that shouldn’t have caused the blank screen …will post further update once re-assembled ..
Thanks again
Dave …….
March 14th, 2008 at 12:24 am
Hi Dave, I would always try the memory first. If you have 2 memory modules remove one and try and boot. Otherwise try a known good memory module to rule out this first. I had the same problem with my Dell Insiron 6000. It sprung into life as soon as I removed one of the memory modules. Cheap fix. If it’s not this then it could be the CPU and possibly the motherboard (expensive).
March 13th, 2008 at 6:27 am
Wonder if there are any Technicians out there who can help me with this one or at least point me in the right direction …..
I have or had till it died last night a : TOSHIBA Satellite S1900 – 305 .
Was using it when it suddenly shut down for no apparent reason .. at first I thought its overheated seems to be a common fault ……..so left it a while …….. switched it back on nothing .
You switch the system on …the green lights on the front panel come on to indicate power .. with the exception of the HDD light ……. the CPU fan runs ……. but it doesn’t even attempt to boot up nor does the screen light up .
You can’t even get the CAPS lock light to come on via the keyboard …… the only keyboard light that does function when pressed is the Function key button Fn ……….
Tried plugging an external monitor in ….. incase the Bios has screwed itself up but nothing …….. even removed the hard drive and put a bootable floppy in to force it to attempt to boot from floppy ……… Again Nothing ……… no attempt at booting ……. no screen lit ……….
I thought if I could get a display either internal or external I could see what state the Bios was in …………
I wouldn’t have thought it likely that the CPU has died …….. or the memory although it may be a possibility ………. I ‘m leaning more to thinking we have a Major problem on the actual Motherboard .
Appreciate any help/comments ..
Thanks in Advance.
Dave
March 10th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
Hey Dick,
Click on the image in the step 2 and you’ll see all these screws marked with red circles.
March 10th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Instructions great for M35X EXCEPT FORGOT TO SAY :
Remove all F5 & F10 screws plus 3 silver ones from the bottom of the laptop before prying off the top.
March 9th, 2008 at 11:39 am
Is there any extented warranty available on these m35 notebooks? Ours was in for service in Nov. new MB and HD.
Thanks
March 3rd, 2008 at 12:50 pm
I have a m35x-s149 which has had its motherboard changed twice. Again, I am having a problem. Sometimes it will boot all the way thru Windows and then suddenly the screen shuts down. It can happen on start-up or anytime, video shuts down. If I push down on the corner of the motherboard by the dc jack/lid switch the video shuts down. But the dc jack seems fine. It’s almost the same as pushing on the lid switch. Anybody have a similiar problem?
February 13th, 2008 at 8:56 am
Hi guys!
I have a Toshiba Satellite M35X-S214 and I have the same problems like other guys.
Fan runs about 5 seconds, power stay on (sometimes), CD-RW don’t eject and nothing show in screen.
I think the notebook was sent to tech support of Toshiba, becouse the DC Jack hava a black thing around connector, like glue and that static eletric thing already fixed.
I already tested all possible solutions: Memory, connectors, Finally, nothing seems solve the problem! I just noticed that the processor and chipset heat.
Can anyone help me, please???
Sorry my english, it’s very poor, I know
I’m just a desperate Brazilian guy!
Thanks!